The Princess and the Packet of Frozen Peas by Tony Wilson illustrated by Sue deGennaro Picture book * * * * Stars (Great!) Prince Henrik wants to fall and love and get married, but he’s not really sure how to choose the perfect princess. When he asks his brother for help, he tells him how he picked out his own perfect princess – with the pea hidden under the multiple mattresses method. Princess Eva, his … Read more
A Confusion of Princes by Garth Nix Science Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) In a future where a confusion of princes rules the stars, millions of princes (specially augmented humans with all different kinds of tek built into their bodies and psionic powers) selected for their superior genetics are specially trained to rule, duel, and – if they’re chosen – compete for the honor of becoming the Emperor. Prince Khemri has just finished … Read more
The Honeybee Man by Lela Nargi Juvenile Fiction/Non-fiction Picture book * * * * Stars (Great!) Fred the Brooklyn beekeeper loves his bees. He climbs up to his rooftop apiaries every morning to greet his colonies with a “Good morning, my bees, my darlings.” And addresses an individual greeting to each of his bee queens (Mab, Nefertiti, and Boadicea). This is an excellent, accessible introduction for younger children to what bees and their keepers do. … Read more
Akata Witch by Nnedi Okorafor Fantasy * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) Sunny is a young albino American-Nigerian who has been living in Nigeria since her mother had a premonition that something bad was going to happen to her if she stayed in the States. Her father never wanted a daughter and certainly never wanted to go back to Nigeria, so he holds a grudge against her. When Sunny’s classmate, Orlu, introduces her to … Read more
Ashes by Ilsa Bick Audio edition Horror Supernatural Suspense Thriller * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) Alex, a teenage girl with cancer, decides to hike out into the woods to scatter her parents’ ashes and make some decisions about her own life. While she’s out in the wilderness, something catastrophic happens – perhaps an EMP (electro-magnetic pulse) – and the whole world changes. Some people die outright, some people change into zombie-like cannibalistic creatures, … Read more
Au Revoir, Crazy European Chick by Joe Schreiber Mystery Realistic Fiction Suspense Thriller * * * * Stars (Great!) Perry Stormaire’s family has been hosting Gobija Zaksauskas – a Lithuanian foreign exchange student – for the past few months. Gobi is definitely not what Perry had hoped for (hot, experienced), although she does have an outrageous accent. But she’s not what she seems, either. Just before she’s supposed to go back to Lithuania, she expresses … Read more
The Life Cycle of a Snail by L.L. Owens Juvenile Non-fiction Picture book * * * Stars (Pretty good) This introduction to snail biology will have young readers racing out to their own backyards to locate their slimy subjects for a closer inspection. Detailed, close-up photographs accompany explications of snails’ life cycle – the one of the land snail laying its eggs in a moist patch of soil is a particularly good catch. While some … Read more
The Book That Eats People by John Perry illustrated by Mark Fearing Picture book * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) This book EATS people. So, if you should find it, be careful. If it makes any funny noises, you’ll want to stop reading immediately, pile stuff on top of it, and probably run for your life – just to be safe. This is the story of the book and the people it’s eaten (a … Read more
The Boss Baby by Marla Frazee Picture book * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) When the Boss Baby arrives, he immediately takes control of his parents’ lives – “He put Mom and Dad on a round-the-clock schedule, with no time off.” Dressed in black footie pajamas that look just like a power suit (with a convenient flap at the back) and a tie, the Boss Baby proceeds to throw his weight around. It’s truly … Read more
The Case of the Vanishing Golden Frogs: A Scientific Mystery by Sandra Markle Juvenile Non-fiction * * * Stars (Pretty good) In the space of just a few years, biologist Karen Lips noticed a serious decline in the population of golden frogs living in the mountain forests of Panama. She discovered massive quantities of dead frogs and was perplexed and concerned about the cause of their deaths. Sandra Markle follows Lips’ investigation into the near-extinction … Read more